1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to a vat of heated cooking liquid, such as oil for cooking food product slices, such as potato slices, and incorporates structure operative to agitate, depress, move and turn the potato slices being cooked and tending to float on the surface of the oil as the slices move from the inlet end of the vat to the outlet end thereof.
2. Description of Related Art
Various different apparatuses heretofore have been utilized for cooking potato slices in the production of potato chips. Many of these previously known devices incorporate overlying conveyors for depressing the potato slices into the cooking oil and which tend to prevent the potato slices from curling naturally and causing potato skins to stick together during the cooking process and other devices utilize paddles for agitating the potato slices during the cooking process and propelling the potato slices from one end of a cooking vat to the other. Further, these previously known forms of potato slice cooking devices, for the most part, have utilized elevated cooking temperatures for accomplishing the desired cooking process with the result that the moisture content of the potato slices being cooked is driven therefrom at excessive speed resulting in a breakdown of the fiber cells of the potato slices and an excessive amount of cooking oil being absorbed by the potato slices during the cooking operation. The excess absorption of cooking oil by the potato slices results not only in the cooked product containing an excess amount of oil but also the consumption of larger quantities of oil during the cooking process and thus a greater expense involved in cooking potato slices on a large volume basis.
Accordingly, a need exists for an improved form of potato slice cooking apparatus which will enable a slower cooking time with the same volume of production and a cooking apparatus which will allow the potato slices being cooking to curl more naturally during the cooking process and further prevent adjacent potato slices from sticking together during the cooking process.